In many instances, a person wishing to listen privately to acoustic sound, for example from a telephone or a personal stereo player, does not wish to hold the acoustic speaker generating the sound to his ear. One way to accomplish both private listening and hands free use is to position the acoustic speaker adjacent the ear of the listener by use of a headband. Such a headband may either be constructed with a speaker located at one end of a resilient band which fits over the wearer's head, or alternatively, the headband may be constructed with a speaker at each end of the band. The band typically is a partial loop generally in the shape of an inverted U. The band must be deformed by spreading the ends of the band apart in order to fit on the wearer's head. When the band is placed on the wearer's head, the ends are released and the spring tension, due to the band's resilience and the deformation required to fit the band on the wearer's head, holds the speaker against the wearer's ear. Since the distance from the top of the head to each ear is different for each wearer, many headbands have been designed in which the band is adjustable.
Prior headband designs include rack and pinion type mounts joining a separated headband so as to permit the distance between the ends of the headband to be adjusted. Another common method of adjusting the headband is to place the acoustic speaker on a bracket slidably mounted upon the headband. Such an arrangement permits the speaker to move on the headband and thereby adjust the distance between the speaker and the top of the band and therefore adjust the distance between the speaker and the opposite end of the band. Although this form of mounting is common, the design relies on friction to hold the speaker in position. As such, the speaker may need to be adjusted each time the headset is worn.
The present invention relates to a headband with a housing which permits the speaker to be held in a predetermined position while permitting easy adjustment of the position of the speaker on the band.